A milestone festival and a tribute to a late, great winemaker

The Grampians Grape Escape at picturesque Halls Gap is returning to Western Victoria this May and will be celebrating its 30th year as one of Australia's iconic wine, food and music festivals.

Tickets are on sale for the event, which will kick off on Friday, May 5 and run for three days.

It will showcase over 100 exhibitors, masterclasses, cooking demonstrations, kids’ activities and live music.

Heading up this year’s guest chef line-up is chef, author and TV presenter Miguel Maestre, along with MasterChef alumni Khanh Ong and comedian and wine expert Merrick Watts.

The Feel-Good Friday will kick off the festival weekend, where fun seekers can begin the end of vintage celebrations dancing to 60s classics from Shell Yeah, a Beach Boys cover band, popular 19-Twenty and cover band Madhouse.

Accommodation is expected to book out quickly so those keen to nab a ticket are encouraged to start planning now.

One of the festival highlights is the annual Grampians Barrique Auction where wine lovers have the chance to take home a bottle from The ‘Barrique, which is made by Grampians winemakers who take a small selection of the very best shiraz from a vintage and create a blend.

A tradition since 1991, the Barrique was influenced by the late Trevor Mast (above), a visionary winemaker at Mount Langi Ghiran who was a pioneer of cool climate shiraz and helped to establish the region's style.

Up until his retirement, Trevor was responsible for blending the barrique and bottling it at Mount Langi Ghiran.

In honour of Trevor Mast, Mount Langhi is holding a Trevor Mast Tribute Weekend over Labour Day long weekend of March 11-12 to celebrate his life and contribution to the Victorian wine industry.

Guests will enjoy a special tribute tasting of a selection of Mast Shiraz, glass of wine and barbecue lunch for $40pp.

https://www.langi.com.au/trevor-mast-tribute-weekend-3/

See www.visitgrampians.com.au and www.grampiansgrapeescape.com.au

Discover a grape escape with a difference

Fancy owning a barrique of fine red wine? 

Or maybe you'd rather just enjoy a glass or two on a day out in the country? 

The Grampians Grape Escape is back on at Halls Gap in Victoria at the end of April and start of May. 

Grampians Winemakers will be hosting their annual Grampians Winemakers Shiraz Barrique Auction; an opportunity for wine lovers, collectors and connoisseurs to take home something special. 

Each winery involved in the auction has provided a small volume of their best shiraz from the 2020 vintage. A tasting will be held prior to the auction at the Barrique Bar.

The barrique to be auctioned will be the 28^th vintage blend that has been produced in the region for auction.

Wineries involved include the likes of Blue Pyrenees, Seppelt, Taltarni, Mount Avoca, Montara, Best's Great Western, Mount Langhi Ghiran and Henty Estate.  

The event returns after a two-year hiatus. I attended a few years ago and it was terrific. 

A not-for-profit festival, Grampians Grape Escape has spotlighted the region’s producers and makers for 30 years and this year will welcome visitors for an extended celebration over three days from Friday, April 29 to Sunday, May 1. 

There will be over 100 exhibitors from Western Victoria and the festival’s first ever Feel-Good Friday will offer visitors the chance to enjoy an afternoon snack from a selection of food trucks, enjoy a local drop from the bar and dust off their dancing shoes with sets from Purple Revolution, a Prince tribute band, and Mixtape’s 80s covers.

Saturday and Sunday will see an array of stalls serving up everything from burgers to paella with cooking demonstrations from guest chefs Geoff Jansz and Emmylou MacCarthy (never heard of her, sorry).  

For more information and to buy tickets, visit the festival website: http://grampiansgrapeescape.com.au/